Cross-linked rand insole and shoe

ABSTRACT

A CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE AND SHOE INCORPORATING THE SAME. THE CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE COMPRISING A PERIPHERAL RAND PORTION AND A CENTRAL, CORE PORTION WHICH ARE INTERCONNECTED BY A PLURALITY OF FRANGIBLE LINKS. AFTER LASTING THE UPPER AND ITS COMPONENTS TO THE RAND PORTION OF THE INSOLE, THE CORE PORTION IS REMOVED BY BREAKING THE FRANGIBLE LINKS. THEREAFER, CONVENTIONAL SHOEMAKING OPERATIONS ARE PERFORMED ON THE LASTED UPPER TO PRODUCE A FINISHED SHOE.

Jan. 5, 1971 c BATCHELDER ET AL' 3,552,041

' CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE AND SHOE Original Filed Sept. 19, 1967 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 l8 INVENTORS CHARLES E BATCH DER BY JEROME A. RUBIC W mew ATTORNEYS Jan. 5, 1971 c, BATCHELDER ET AL 3,552,041

CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE AND SHOE Original Filed Sept. 19, 1967 S Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG? INVENTORS CHARLES E BATCHELDER JEROME A. RUBICO ATTORNEYS Jam-5, 1971 c. BATCHELDER ETAL 3,552,041

CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE AND SHOE OriginalFiled Sept. 19, 1967 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. CHARLES E BATCHELDER BY JEROME A RUBICO I Q N United States Patent 3,552,041 CROSS-LINKED RAND INSOLE AND SHOE Charles F. Batchelder, Milton, and Jerome A. Rubico, Boston, Mass., assignors to Batchelder-Rubico, Inc., Boston, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Continuation of application Ser. No. 671,727, Sept. 29, 1967, which is a division of application Ser. No. 310,029, Sept. 19, 1963. This application Nov. 6, 1969, Ser. No. 871,625

Int. Cl. A43b 13/38 US. CI. 36-43 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A cross-linked rand insole and shoe incorporating the same. The cross-linked rand insole comprises a peripheral rand portion and a central, core portion which are interconnected by a plurality of frangible links. After lasting the upper and its components to the rand portion of the insole, the core portion is removed by breaking the frangible links. Thereafter, conventional shoemaking operations are performed on the lasted upper to produce a finished shoe.

RELATED INVENTIONS This application is a continuation of US. patent application Ser. No. 671,727, filed Sept. 29, 1967 (now abandoned), which application is a division of US. patent application Ser. No. 310,029, filed Sept. 19, 1963 by Charles F. Batchelder and Jerome A. Rubico for Process for Making Shoes Having Cross-Linked Rand Insole now US. Pat. No. 3,345,663, which in turn was a specific improvement over the prior and copending application Ser. No. 278,568, filed May 7, 1963 by the same inventors for Shoe and Process for Making the Same, now US. Pat. No. 3,386,116.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to shoes and shoemaking, and more particularly to a novel cross-linked rand insole and an unusually light and flexible shoe employing the same.

The objects and features of this invention will best be understood and appreciated from more detailed descriptions of preferred embodiments thereof, selected for purposes of illustration, and shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a lasted shoe manufactured in accordance with our invention with a portion of the upper cut away to expose the internal construction of the shoe;

FIG. 2 is a view in perspective of the shoe of our invention following the lasting operation but prior to sole laying;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cross-linked rand insole blank of our invention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a form of the cross-linked rand insole of our invention employed in the manufacture of womens high heeled shoes;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view in end elevation of the shoe after lasting but before sole laying;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view in end elevation along the lines 66 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view showing our invention adapted for a Goodyear shoe;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view in end elevation showing our invention adapted for a multiple soled shoe; and

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view in end elevation showing our invention adapted for a multiple soled shoe in which one sole element is attached by stitching.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The primary element of our invention herein described is a cross-linked rand insole indicated generally at 10 in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4. By the term cross-linked rand insole, we mean an insole which has been cut out in the conventional shape and additionally cut or slit inwardly of its periphery so as to separate the insole into two portions, one constituting a rand 12 extending substantially around at least the forward portion of the shoe, and a central or core portion 14 extending across the entire area within the rand 12. The rand 12, however, is not entirely severed from the core portion 14, but is maintained crosslinked thereto by small ties or links 16 spaced around the insole.

The material employed in the production of the crosslinked rand insole 10 may be extremely thin, down to 1 iron and may be fabricated from synthetic materials such as Texon, manufactured by Texon, Inc., Russell, Mass., or Jenkins board, manufactured by George 0. Jenkins Company of Bridgewater, Mass. In addition, Gem duck, leather, and the like materials may also be suitable.

The cross-linked rand insole 10 may be formed by cutting the base stock material in a suitable insole cutting machine or clicker, the severance of the rand 12 from the core 14 being accomplished by a double die arrangement in which the outer periphery of the cross-linked rand insole 10 and the inner perforations are all cut with a single stroke of the clicker arm.

After the cross-linked rand insole 10 has been cut from suitable insole stock, the steps of a preferred embodiment of the process are as follows:

Step l.--The insole 10 is applied to a last 18. Since the insole is relatively flexible as a result of the rand 12 being substantially severed from the core 14, it readily conforms to the compound curvatures of the last 18 with out fighting the last.

Step 2.The cross-linked rand insole 10 is next temporarily secured to the last 18 by conventional means such as by tacks. It can also be secured by spot adhesive bonding or other suitable means. If tacks are used, the tacks are driven preferably through the insole core 14 thus leaving the outer rand 12 entirely free of tacks. Since the rand 12 and core 14 are joined together by the links 16, tacking the core 14 to the last is sufiicient to firmly position the rand 12 on the last. The primary advantage of our invention, however, with respect to the tacks is realized only when the core 14 is subsequently removed from the completed shoe either prior to sole laying or thereafter. In both cases, the possibility of broken tacks accidentally remaining in the completed shoe is completely eliminated because the tacks will either remain in the last or be removed along with the insole core 14.

As an alternative to tacking the cross-linked rand insole 10 to the last 18, spot adhesive bonding can be employed to temporarily secure the cross-linked rand insole 10 to the last 18. The cement which is used for spot adhesive bonding must provide an adequate bond to hold the cross-linked rand insole 10 in place during the lasting process, yet be sufiiciently weak to permit subsequent rupture of the cement bond. For this purpose, we employ a latex-based cement sold by the Cambridge Chemical Company under their designation No. 1366. When this particular type of cement is allowed to dry on the surface of the cross-linked rand insole 10 for approximately three minutes until the white color disappears, it can then be stuck to the last 18 snfficiently to hold the cross-linked rand insole 10 in place during the lasting, but without creating such a permanent bond that the core portion 14 cannot thereafter be removed from the last 18.

Step 3.-With the cross-linked rand insole 10 thus temporarily secured to last 18, if the lasting cement has not already been pre-cemented to the rand 12, it may then be applied to the lasting margin of the rand 12 preparatory to cement lasting an upper 20. In some processes, however, lasting cement is applied simultaneously with the lasting operation. Since the entire central portion of the cross-linked rand insole 10 is solid and since the core 14 and the rand 12 are in virtually abutting relation, the lasting cement can be brushed, rolled or otherwise applied to the insole lasting margin without danger of accidentally spreading cement on the bottom of the last 18. The lasting margin of the upper 20 is then lasted to the cement-coated margin of the rand 12. FIG. depicts in cross-section the lasted upper 20 and the rand 12.

It will be noted that the forces applied to the rand 12 during lasting act on the links 16 almost entirely in tension and accordingly the materials of which the crosslinked rand insole is made should be relatively strong in tension. In addition, it will be noted that the links 16 are spaced in diametrically opposed pairs across the insole 10, and appropriately located in the toe, ball, shank and heel areas of the shoe. As shown in FIG. 2, the size and spacing of the links 16 is approximately correct for Texon having a 2 iron thickness. Other materials, of course, may require different link dimensions and spacing. The guide to the selection of these variables is, of course, to have sufficient cross-linking to support and hold the shape of the rand 12 during lasting, while still permitting the core 14 to be sufiiciently free from the rand to permit subsequent removal of the core 14.

Step 4.After lasting the upper to the rand 12, the lasting margin of the upper 20 is roughed in the conventional manner. During the roughing process, the abutting margins of the rand 12 and core 14 are reduced in thickness, which in turn also reduces the thickness of, and consequently the strength of, the links 16. This reduction of thickness and strength may be important if materials which are relatively strong in tear resistance are employed. Also if the cross-linked rand insole has a thickness of 3 irons or more, it may be important to employ the roughing operation to impart a bevel to the inner periphery of the rand 12 for purposes of smoothness of the shoe bottom and comfort to the wearer. On the other hand, it should be noted that the construction of the cross-linked rand insole 10 of our invention, including a multiplicity of closely spaced links, permits the use of extremely thin material. This is an advantage as far as cost and weight are concerned, but also the thinness means that there is less need to bevel the inner edge of the rand 12.

Step 5.After lasting and roughing as described in Steps 3 and 4, the tacks holding the cross-linked rand 10 to the last 18 are pulled out and, after applying the sole laying cement to the rand and lasting margin of the upper, the core portion 14 of the cross-linked rand 10 is then torn out as may be seen in process in FIG. 2. If the cross-linked rand insole 10 had been adhesively secured rather than tacked to the last 18, the tearing out operation shown in FIG. 2 would simply involve rupturing the adhesive bond between it and the last at that time. Normally Step 5 is carried out when the shoe is in condition such that the upper will not distort the unsupported rand 12. Thus if the core 14 is removed and the upper is allowed to dry on the last for a substantial period after the removal, but prior to sole laying, there is a possibility that the unsupported rand might pull away from its proper position on the last. We have found, however, that such distortion does not take place if the sole laying operation is carried out soon after removal of the core portion 14, or if the upper is allowed to dry and lose its temper prior to removal of the core portion.

Step 6.--After removal of the core portion 14, the shoe is in condition as shown in FIG. 5, and it is completed, as shown in FIGS. 6, 8 and 9, by cementing or otherwise attaching by conventional means one or more outsole elements 22 to the roughed lasting margin of the 4 upper 20 and to so much of the inner peripheral margin of the rand 12 as is exposed. Since the sole laying adhesive was applied while the core portion 14 was still in place, there is no danger that sole laying adhesive would have spilled over onto the last, and for this reason the application of cement can extend out to and completely cover the entire inner periphery of the rand. Thus an extremely complete and uniform bond between the outsole and the bonding margin of the upper 20 and rand 12 can be made following the procedures herein described.

The subsequent conventional steps of pulling the last, inserting a sock lining, 'etc. are then carried out, but since they form no part of the invention, they will not be described in detail herein.

Turning now to the special features and advantages of our invention, it will be seen that the cross-linked rand insole construction presents important economies in labor and material. From the manufacturing viewpoint, the process is highly attractive because (a) it eliminates the need for distinguishing between right and left insole elements, (b) one die only for each insole size is needed, (c) the danger of broken or unpulled tacks remaining in the shoe is eliminated, (d) the operator need not take care with respect to the area of application of lasting or sole laying cement, and (e) the need for last bottom cleaning is eliminated. As for the shoe itself, since the sole laying adhesive can be applied to the entire inner bonding margin of the upper and rand, an extremely uniform and extensive outsole bond can be achieved.

Particularly with respect to the shoe itself, it will be noted that our invention permits the construction of an extremely flexible shoe in which the heel of the shoe virtually seems to follow or hug the heel of the wearer. Thus the novel construction of this shoe is ideally suited for shoes of the type known as loafers as well as producing a remarkably comfortable dress shoe. Moreover, it will be noted that the extremely uniform and complete adhesive bond permitted by the fact that the adhesive can be applied prior to the removal of the core portion 14 without danger of inadvertent application of adhesive to the bottom of the last while completely covering the vital peripheral margin of the rand and lasting margin of the upper, insures the production of a strong and permanent adhesive bond for the outsole.

Having thus disclosed and described a preferred embodiment of our invention, it will now be apparent to those skilled in the art that variations in the specific form herein described can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. Thus certain materials may be employed having sufficient tensile strength to withstand lasting tensions and which are otherwise so weak in tear resistance that the size and spacing of the links 16 as shown in FIG. 2 may be substantially varied. In addition, it will be seen that a Goodyear welt shoe can be made by the process herein described (see FIG. 7). This is done by attaching an insole rib 23 to the cross-linked rand insole 10 in the area of the rand portion 12, then lasting the upper 20 to the insole rib 23, and then attaching a welt 24 to the insole rib 23 prior to tearing out the core portion 14. Certain of the advantages of the shoe and process of our invention are not enjoyed by such a Goodyear welt shoe, but, on the other hand, with Goodyear welt shoes the process clearly benefits from the safety feature of our invention in that no broken or unpulled tacks can remain in the shoe. Also, it permits the insertion of a relatively thick pad 26 in the area of the shoe otherwise occupied by bottom fill material. The possibility of increased comfort from such a pad is an important consideration. Also such a shoe is substantially more flexible than the usual Goodyear welt shoe because it avoids the resistance to shoe flexing normally imparted by the insole. It will be understood also that the process of our invention is adaptable similarly to other conventional shoemaking processes.

Also it will be noted that the core portion 14 can effectively be permitted to remain in the shoe during sole laying and be removed thereafter either at the time the last is pulled from the shoe or by a separate step after last pulling.

Accordingly, it is not our intention to confine the invention to the precise form herein shown, but rather to limit it in terms of the appended claims.

Having thus described and disclosed a preferred embodiment of our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A cross-linked rand insole comprising: a peripheral rand portion having an outer periphery corresponding to the outer periphery of the bottom of a last and an inner periphery spaced inwardly from said outer periphery by a dimension at least as great as the width of the lasting margin of an upper suitable for said last; a core portion extending across and occupying the space defined within the inner periphery of said rand portions, said core portion including the forepart and a major portion of the area between the ball tread line and the beginning of the narrow neck portion of the shank of said insole; and, frangible means interconnecting said rand and core portions.

2. A cross-linked rand insole as defined in claim 1 further characterized by said rand and core portions being cut from a single blank and said frangible connecting means integral with said rand and core portions.

3. A cross-linked rand insole as defined in claim 1 further characterized by an insole rib on said rand portion.

4. A cross-linked rand insole comprising: a peripheral rand portion having an outer periphery corresponding to the outer periphery of the bottom of a last and an inner periphery spaced inwardly from said outer periphery; a removable interior core potion extending across and occupying the space defined within the inner periphery of said rand portion, said core portion including the forepart and a major portion of the area between the ball tread line and the beginning of the narrow neck portion of the shank of said insole and means linking together said portions at a plurality of spaced points across said inner periphery.

5. A shoe comprising: a rand insole having an outer periphery and an inner periphery spaced inwardly of said outer periphery and defining a central core area surrounded by said rand insole, said core portion including the forepart and a major portion of the area between the ball tread line and the beginning of the narrow neck portion of the shank of said insole, said outer periphery conforming to the peripheral shape of the bottom of a last; an upper having a lasting margin lasted to said rand; a layer of sole laying cement substantially completely covering said upper lasting margin and any exposed portion of said rand; and a sole element cement-bonded to said lasting margin and said exposed portion of said rand.

6. A shoe as defined in claim 5 further characterized by a midsole cement-bonded to said lasting margin.

7. A shoe as defined in claim 5 further characterized by a plurality of shoe elements one of which is attached to said rand and lasting margin.

8. A shoe as defined by claim 5 further characterized by at least one sole element attached to said shoe by stitchmg.

9. A Goodyear welt shoe comprising: a rand insole having an outer periphery conforming generally to the peripheral shape of a shoe and an inner periphery spaced inwardly of said outer periphery and defining a central core area at the insole level of said shoe, said core portion including the forepart and a major portion of the area between the ball tread line and the beginning of the narrow neck portion of the shank of said insole an insole rib on said rand; an upper lasted to said rib; a welt attached to said rib; and an outsole attached to said welt.

10. A cross-linked rand insole comprising: a peripheral rand portion having an outer periphery corresponding to the outer periphery of the bottom of a last and an inner periphery spaced inwardly from said outer periphery by a dimension at least as great as the width of the lasting margin of an upper suitable for said last; a core portion extending across and occupying the space defined within the inner periphery of said rand portions; and, a frangible means interconnecting said rand and core portions.

11. A cross-linked rand insole comprising: a peripheral rand portion having an outer periphery corresponding to the outer periphery of the bottom of a last and an inner periphery spaced inwardly from said outer periphery by a dimension at least as great as the width of the lasting margin of an upper suitable for said last; a core portion extending across and occupying the space defined within the inner periphery of said rand portions, said core portion including the forepart and substantially all of the shank area of the insole, and, frangible means interconnecting said rand and core portions.

12. A cross-linked rand insole as defined in claim 11 further characterized by said rand and core portions being cut from a single blank and said frangible cementing means integral with said rand and core portion.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 20,273 2/1937 Sbicca 3619.5X 1,751,036 3/1930 Hooke et al. 3617 2,012,914 8/1935 Maccarone 3617 2,027,737 1/1936 Laible 12-142(D) 2,090,019 8/1937 Bain 12-142(F) 2,132,882 10/1938 Rigandi 3617X 2,144,330 1/1939 Farrington 12142(F) 2,145,713 1/1939 Damon 3619.5 2,847,339 8/ 1958 Strickland 36-22UX 3,133,360 5/1964 Taylor 36-17 3,235,979 2/1966 Sherbrook 3622 3,314,092 4/1967 Pujol 3619.5X

FOREIGN PATENTS 122,121 9/1946 Australia 36l9.5 214,044 4/1924 Great Britain 3619.5

ALFRED R. GUEST, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 36l7 3,552,041 January 5,1971

Patent No. Dated Charles F. Batchelder and Jerome A. Rubico Inventor(s) It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 5, line 33, "potion" should be -portion-;

Column 5, line 56, change "shoe elements" to sole elements-- Column 6, line 34, change "cementing means" to connecting means Signed and sealed this 6th day of July 1971 (SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETGHER,JR. WILLIAM E. SCHUYLER, JT Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patent: 

